Lapsang Souchong Highlights

Taste the world's very first black tea.

Freshly handpicked during this year's Spring season.

Direct from the original region Tongmu.

Subtle, but not excessive smoky flavour.

Subtle Smokiness

Often times, Lapsang Souchong teas (or 'Zhengshan Xiaozhong') outside of China tend to be overly smoky, covering up all the delicate flavours and aromas this well known black tea can potentially deliver. In practice, strong smoky flavours are mainly applied to lower grade raw leaves.

We're proud to present you Teasenz' amazingly well-balanced Xiaozhong consisting out of delicate hand-picked leaves from this Spring. It's carefully processed in the most authentic way under strict quality monitoring by experienced tea masters. The leaves are traditionally roasted on pinewood to obtain a 'subtle' level of smokiness, while the amazing aroma and flavours are still able to shine through. It's naturally delicious.

Origin & legend

During the late Ming dynasty (1568) a group of soldiers were passing by Tongmu. Due to the chaos caused, the villagers had no time to process the leaves into green tea. The second day, the leaves were withered. In attempt to save the tea leaves, the farmers started to roast it with pine wood.

By surprise, the villagers and soldiers loved the tea resulting from this improvised and innovative processing method. As a result, year after year the amount of orders increased and the villagers weren't able to keep up with the demand. Especially, when this tea was presented during an international trading fair in Fuzhou, it attracted many European traders. Zhengshan Xiaozhong eventually became a tribute tea to the royal court of United Kingdom.

Today, Tongmu is within the one of China's key national nature reserve and classified as a world heritage by UNESCO.

From which tea region is Lapsang Souchong tea?

Our Lapsang Souchong tea is from the Wuyi region of the Chinese province of Fujian. The Wuyi Mountain is blessed by nature: mild weather with sufficient rainfall and sunlight and fertile soil, making it one of the most famous tea growing area in the world. Apart from this black tea, the Wuyi Mountains also produces other famous teas belong to the so called “Wuyi Cliff Family” of teas.

Tea Pairings: What food goes well with Lapsang Souchong?

Most tea enthousiasts will agree that this tea should be consumed without any snacks or dishes. When you would like to enjoy this tea with some snacks than different kinds of nuts and seeds are the most suitable as they have a fairly neutral taste. If you really would like to pair Lapsang Souchong with a real dish then go for curry and beef dishes. Other tip: avoid sweet dishes.

Additional Info

Additional Info

Steeping time

4 min

Steeping temperature

95 °C - 200 °F

Leaves per 500ml / 17oz teapot

2-5 gram

Tablespoons / 500ml (17 oz)

1 tbsp

Tea Year

2020

Tea Season

Spring

Tea Caffeine Content

high

Tea Region

Wuyi Mountain

Tea Province

Fujian

Gluten-free

yes

Tea in Chinese

正山小种

Reviews

Customer Reviews (6)

Best black tea I have ever tried.

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I add fresh milk to this tea. Very nice. Review by Kota(Posted on 6/20/2018)

A lot going on here

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This is one of my first adventures in not-mass-produced teas. There is a lot going on with the flavor. The aroma reminds me of malt extract from my beer making days. It threw me off for a second, but it is very pleasant. The taste is smoky with a hint of fruit on the back end, reminds me of dates. I'm not sure I will order more of it right away since I have more teas to explore, but I am glad I have it right now.Review by T-noob(Posted on 9/15/2015)

Not what I expected in the way of a smoky tea, but it was a delicious surprise.

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The leaves here are dark and twisty and do not smell smoky at all. In fact, I'm a little confused by the labeling of this tea as it tastes like.... Laoshan Black! Not quite exactly the same, as Laoshan Black has a slightly twistier leaf and also more oily black, but I think this sort of flavor is rare. The flavor is a lighter chocolate with hints of caramel, though I could have used two teaspoons to see if that works better. This type of flavor is always difficult for me to describe, but it is along the lines of Laoshan Black.. the flavor isn't very strong, with a lighter brew, but this isn't a tiny leaf tea. I know with every cup I steep up of teas like this, I love them more and more. Again, no smoke at all, so I think the name Lapsang Souchong might scare some away. Try a sample, as I think anyone could love this tea.Review by C(Posted on 8/17/2014)

Love It

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I love the smokiness of this tea. I brought this tea to work place and have let my co-workers try. Most of them didn't like it thought, which I really don't understand. I guess this is not the right to as a gift, cause it's a bit risky for beginning tea drinkers. I would highly recommend it though to more experienced tea drinkers who want to try out a different taste. Review by Marita(Posted on 1/13/2013)

More Floral than usual

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This lapsang souchong is a little bit more delicate and floral than the others that I have tried from other stores. A good choice for those we are looking for a more accessible lapsang souchong or for those who want to try the lapsang souchong for the first time. Review by Robert(Posted on 1/13/2013)

Smokey Taste

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I bought this after reading about it elsewhere online, and don't regret that I did. It's indeed very smoky but I'm accustomed to that taste and appreciate it. Review by Allessandro(Posted on 1/13/2013)